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Why headphones rule

I"d guess I've been to over a thousand gigs Over the past 40 years and like my music loud. Listening via headphones is the only way I can create similar volumes without pissing off the whole neighborhood.

These volumes have affected my hearing and I do struggle to hold conversation in noisy environments. I accept this sacrifice for the 40 years and counting of pleasure live music and headphones have given me.
 
I ended up buying a headphone amp for my portable setup, modern players just don't seem to go high enough for me (could turn the volume limiter off on my old potable CD player). I'm still impressed with the quality of sound from my little 3-way iems, and their less headphoney (sound seems to come from the middle of your head) than my overear set.
 
If my hearing ever deteriorates the nice thing about headphones is that I can just turn the volume up. No need for a hearing aid.
 
Dozey said:
my hearing ever deteriorates the nice thing about headphones is that I can just turn the volume up. No need for a hearing aid.
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My philosophy as well. Of course you could whack up the speakers instead, then everybody else would go Mutt 'n' Jeff.
 
Headphones are great and have their place. I just bought a fairly decent headphone setup (Focal Clear with iFi Micro iDSD Black Label) to run Tidal Hifi/MQA off my laptop and was listening to it thinking how wonderful it sounded. Then one night I had a session with my analogue setup (Xerxes/Teddy Pardo/Active SL2s) and realized that however good the headphones are they're not a patch on my main system.
 
Not sure if you're comparing the lap-top system with h/phones or using h/phones into your main system, Echann. I can have as good an evening's session from tuner, vinyl or CD on my cans (HD650) as listening to the same on my ESLs. Different, certainly, but each 'system' has its own musical merits. The pre. is the same, though the h/phone amp is the extra here.
 
Mike Reed said:
Not sure if you're comparing the lap-top system with h/phones or using h/phones into your main system, Echann. I can have as good an evening's session from tuner, vinyl or CD on my cans (HD650) as listening to the same on my ESLs. Different, certainly, but each 'system' has its own musical merits. The pre. is the same, though the h/phone amp is the extra here.
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I'm comparing my headphone system (laptop/DAC/Amp/Phones) to my vinyl system played through speakers. Pony Girl's deep bass notes just don't roll over me with headphones like they do via the speakers.
 
Conversely I think my headphone rig usefully betters the ESLs, though in the midrange it’s a close call. That being said, it took the Mjolnir to get the really powerful, deep bass out of the 007mk1s; the Stax amps just don’t cut it...
 
JTC said:
Conversely I think my headphone rig usefully betters the ESLs, though in the midrange it’s a close call. That being said, it took the Mjolnir to get the really powerful, deep bass out of the 007mk1s; the Stax amps just don’t cut it...
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Maybe I need to upgrade my month old iFi.
 
I think with headphones you need to spend a great deal or they will spend most of there life being looked at.
 
koi said:
I think with headphones you need to spend a great deal or they will spend most of there life being looked at.
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Would you care to elaborate on this sweeping generalization with some facts to back it up?

Several years ago I realized that the internet has become almost worthless because you can find any opinion from any extreme on it.
You have to know the answer to the question before you ask it in order to filter out the responses.

To prove my point I made an internet search. I might have used the wrong terms or didn't search hard enough. So let me just make the internet complete here and now:
Black is actually white.
 
I think the same is true of speakers to be fair. My ESLs are silent way more than they are singing. As are my Stax. And which gets pressed into use is usually dependent on my mood and whether the kids are off to bed or not.... although often it's the Stax that I use to shut out the kids and the ESLs that sing gently once the little monsters are away.....
 
seek and ye.....

on the cost thing, it depends on your need and like, but headphones of a very basic nature do tend to be quite undistinguished sounding. Get above £150 however and it's just a matter of choosing your poison.
 
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